Page 7 - Switzerland

EFTA deal with India could be signed before 2024 elections: Swiss envoy

Switzerland's Ambassador to India, Ralf Heckner, has expressed optimism that the crucial European Free Trade Association (EFTA) deal with the country would be wrapped up before the 2024 general elections. Heckner stressed on the importance of the proposed trade deal for unlocking innovation and investment opportunities. "Both sides have been negotiating very closely and seriously over the last more than 12 months. I remain positive that the deal would be wrapped up before the (2024) elections," he told PTI. The envoy was recently in the city to unveil the Kolkata chapter of the Swiss-India Chamber of Commerce. Parliamentary elections in India are due in early 2024. "If India wants innovation, it needs to work with about 12 to 15 countries, and one of those countries is Switzerland for a world of investments and innovation," We will have a more strategic innovation relationship with India, Heckner stated. India and the EFTA states Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland

Optimistic about EFTA deal with India before 2024 polls, says Swiss envoy

Switzerland's Ambassador to India, Ralf Heckner, has expressed optimism that the crucial European Free Trade Association (EFTA) deal with the country would be wrapped up before the 2024 general elections. Heckner stressed on the importance of the proposed trade deal for unlocking innovation and investment opportunities. "Both sides have been negotiating very closely and seriously over the last more than 12 months. I remain positive that the deal would be wrapped up before the (2024) elections," he told PTI. The envoy was recently in the city to unveil the Kolkata chapter of the Swiss-India Chamber of Commerce. Parliamentary elections in India are due in early 2024. "If India wants innovation, it needs to work with about 12 to 15 countries, and one of those countries is Switzerland for a world of investments and innovation," We will have a more strategic innovation relationship with India, Heckner stated. Noting the sharp rise in visa application processing numbers, which hit a r

Trafigura sets aside $127 mn provision for Brazil, US DOJ fine to end probe

Trafigura is alleged to have made profits from these contracts amounting so far to $143.7 million

Switzerland govt confirms woman found dead in Delhi was Swiss citizen

Switzerland has confirmed that a woman whose chained body was found from west Delhi's Tilak Nagar was a Swiss citizen. In a reply to a query from the PTI, Valentin Clivaz, Deputy Head of Media, Embassy of Switzerland in Delhi, in a statement said: "The FDFA (Federal Department of Foreign Affairs) confirms the death of a Swiss citizen in India." The Swiss embassy here is in contact with the local authorities. The FDFA supports relatives within the framework of consular protection, Clivaz said and added that no further details can be given for reasons of "data protection and personal privacy". The decomposed body of Nina Berger, aged around 30 years, was found from a spot near the wall of a Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) school in Tilak Nagar on Friday. Her limbs were tied with metal chains, which were locked. On Tuesday, the Delhi Police had said it was waiting for the family members of the deceased to come forward and identify the body so that the process of autopsy could be

Some MNCs may face tax heat as SC clears air on MFN applicability

The issue emerged when India signed treaties with other nations, including Slovenia, Lithuania, and Colombia, and fixed a lower rate (5 per cent withholding tax)

India-Swiss relations example in today's era of war: Ambassador Heckner

Peaceful and friendly relations like the one between Switzerland and India are the way to go, especially in today's era of war, Swiss Ambassador Ralf Heckner said at the 'SwitzerlandIndia in Bloom' event here marking the 75 years of friendship treaty between the two countries. The event, held at the Embassy of Switzerland on Friday, commemorated this historic milestone through a lot of symbolism created through floral artwork. "Seventy-five years back India and Switzerland signed a friendship treaty and India had chosen Switzerland as the first country to sign the friendship treaty with after Independence. "So we are celebrating today friendship and peace. Those are the two words that we find in that treaty, and especially today in an era of war... peaceful and friendly relations like the one between Switzerland and India are definitely the way to go," the Ambassador told PTI. Switzerland and India signed the "Treaty of Friendship and Establishment" on August 14, 1948. This was the

India gets 5th set of Swiss bank details under info exchange framework

This is fifth such annual exchange of information between Switzerland and India with officials saying that new details shared with Indian authorities pertain to "hundreds of financial accounts"

Glaciers in Switzerland lose 10% of their ice volume in two years

Swiss glaciers have lost as much ice over this two-year period as was lost over the three decades between 1960 and 1990

UBS, Credit Suisse see growing probe over alleged Russian sanctions evasion

The probe is still at an early stage and may not result in charges or a settlement, the people said

Switzerland's gold exports up in August due to higher shipments to India

Switzerland is the world's biggest bullion refining and transit hub, while China and India are the largest consumer markets with local demand sensitive to high prices and time of the season

UBS Group AG to cut hundreds of wealth jobs in Asia as activity slows

UBS is battling muted client sentiment and activity levels in Asia-Pacific, where the regional business hub of Hong Kong has long been a booking center along with Singapore for China's ultra-wealthy

UBS Group begins $10 billion cuts, to fire 3,000 Swiss staffers: Report

The prediction of over $10 billion in cost-savings by end 2026 compares with an earlier estimate of $8 billion by 2027

UBS poised to keep Credit Suisse's domestic bank business, drop brand

The Zurich-based lender has set a target of winding down the Credit Suisse brand in the country, people familiar with the matter said

Swiss glaciers threatened as heat drives zero-temp level to record altitude

The Swiss weather service said Monday a heat wave has driven the zero-degree Celsius level to its highest altitude since recordings on it in Switzerland began nearly 70 years ago, an ominous new sign for the country's vaunted glaciers. MeteoSwiss says the zero-degree isotherm level reached 5,298 meters (17,381 feet) above sea level over Switzerland overnight Sunday to Monday. All of Switzerland's snow-capped Alpine peaks the highest being the 4,634-meter (15,203-foot) Monte Rosa summit had air temperatures over zero Celsius (32 F) where water freezes to ice, raising prospects of a thaw. Even Mont Blanc, Europe's highest mountain along the Italian-French border at some 4,809 meters (15,800 feet), is affected, the weather agency said based on readings from its weather balloons. The new high altitude eclipsed a previous record set in July 2022, a year that experts say was particularly devastating for the glaciers of Switzerland. Readings have been taken on the zero-degree altitude ..

Cleanup after train derailment will close key Swiss tunnel for months

Train travellers between north and southernmost Switzerland will have to take the scenic route in the coming months, rail authorities said Wednesday, as the clean-up operation from a freight train derailment last week in the Gotthard Railway tunnel will take longer than expected. National railway operator SBB said 16 cars that jumped the tracks in last Thursday's derailment remain stuck inside the 57-kilometre long Gotthard Railway Tunnel in the southern Ticino region. No one was injured in the derailment but the damage was considerable. Images from the site showed, among other things, wine bottles strewn along the tracks inside the tunnel. The tunnel is a crucial thoroughfare for goods and cargo, particularly between Germany to the north and Italy to the south. Last year, more than two-thirds of rail freight traffic through the Alps passed through the tunnel, according to the Swiss government. One side of the tunnel the tube that was unaffected in the derailment should be operab

Undue influence? Anonymous donations to WHO's new foundation raise concerns

Nearly 40 per cent of the money raised by the WHO Foundation in its first two years came from anonymous sources, worrying some that donors may be trying to influence the World Health Organisation and its role in shaping global health policy with their gifts. The foundation, launched in 2020 to help raise private sector funds for the WHO, said it received USD 66 million in direct gifts through 2022, with USD 26 million coming from donors who chose not to be publicly named. Anil Soni, WHO Foundation CEO, told The Associated Press the foundation's board, which includes a representative from the WHO, knows the donors' identities and that the foundation will not accept a gift if there is a conflict of interest. They want to be anonymous because they're otherwise solicited or even targeted because they're seen to be a source of wealth, Soni said in an interview. And I respect that. The foundation, which is based in Switzerland, is not required to disclose its donors. Some global health

Switzerland to become net importer of cheese this year for first time

Switzerland will import more cheese than it exports this year for the first time, according to the head of the country's dairy association. The opening up of the Swiss milk market has put a squeeze on domestic producers in recent years, prompting some to give up, Boris Beuret told Geneva-based newspaper Le Temps in an interview published Saturday. Beuret said measures need to be taken to ensure Switzerland famous worldwide for high-quality cheese varieties such as Gruyre and Emmentaler can continue to produce for its own population. If not, then we will end up importing (cheese), which would be absurd economically, socially and ecologically, he was quoted as saying.

Switzerland investigates ex-CEO Thomas Gottstein of Credit Suisse

Gottstein is among the Credit Suisse officials under investigation, the Swiss newspaper said

iPhone maker trying to get IP rights on Apple fruit in unique battle

Tech giant Apple is reportedly trying to gain intellectual property (IP) rights over depictions of apples, the fruit, which has left a fruit farmer's organisation in Switzerland worried

Projections indicate Swiss approve climate bill amid melting glaciers

A majority of Swiss citizens on Sunday voted in favour of a bill aimed at introducing new climate measures to sharply curb the rich Alpine nation's greenhouse gas emissions, projections indicated. Projections by the GFS Bern Institute based on near-complete counting and released by public broadcaster SRF showed that 58.3% of voters were in favour of the bill. The margin of error was plus or minus 2 percentage points, SRF reported. Exact results are expected later in the day. The referendum was sparked by a campaign by scientists and environmentalists to save Switzerland's iconic glaciers, which are melting away at an alarming rate. Campaigners initially proposed even more ambitious measures but later backed a government plan that requires Switzerland to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. It also sets aside more than 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.357 billion) to help wean companies and homeowners off fossil fuels. The nationalist Swiss People's Party, which demanded the popular vot